Pokemon War
by ProwlaWilds
Summary: Many years have gone by in the Pokemon world. There is a new uprising! Team Humana believes Pokemon do not belong. Will Neito and his friends be able to stop them?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Nowhere Left to Run**

Through the window, the snow fell silently. I watched from the warmth and safety of our new shelter. Drinking some hot coffee, it was still not easy to relax. We were basically fugitives on the run from the snatchers. It wasn't that long ago that all the regions went to war with the group known as Team Humana. Team Humana believes that humans are the true inhabitants of this world. They believe Pokemon don't belong. The majority of people disagree, but Team Humana managed to collect enough artillery as well as capture and enslave enough Pokemon to proclaim war.

Some Pokemon trainers (and the like) joined the resistance readily. They knew they had to stand up to Team Humana. Brave souls like my brother marched against them. The Pokemon partners of these courageous trainers agreed to join them on the battlefield without hesitation. Some of us weren't ready to fight, though. I wasn't. I didn't want to risk the lives of any of my Pokemon. I was a champion on the Pokemon battlefield, but on the real battlefield, matches didn't end by choice. They ended by death and destruction.

What would this war prove? The outcome of a war was never fulfilling for either side. Even though the snow was silent, the sounds and flashes of war could be heard in the distance. Each time I heard what I could only imagine was an explosion I held my Pokemon tighter. I was glad they were still by my side, even if we were hiding in a shack that used to be someone's home before the war. Both sides in this war have destroyed many villages purposely or accidentally leaving people and Pokemon homeless or in crowded shelters.

I looked around at all the little cowering Pokemon. They must have missed their homes. I missed my home. My house had been destroyed in the war. I was hiding now with one of my best friends, Ashy. We were hiding from the Pokemon snatchers. These were horrible people who worked for Team Humana. They would snatch Pokemon and fit them with a collar that can be used to control the Pokemon wearing it. If a strong Pokemon tried to resist, the collar severely shocked them into submission. Not only did Team Humana have snatchers, but also the side I considered myself part of, the resistance, they would capture wild Pokemon just to join in their fight. It was wrong! When someone catches a Pokemon it is to build a bond, a friendship. It is to be lifelong partners in this world. It's not just to fight! But that's what war does. It makes people forget what is truly important.

Ashy and I were now hiding with our own Pokemon as well as the wild ones that remained. We were what they called flakes and hoarders. Flakes were trainers who were able to, but refused to take part in the war. I knew the resistance needed our help, but I couldn't help, not this way. My brother hadn't spoken with me in months, and Ashy's father, a great Pokemon champion had all but abandoned his daughter. Her mother would try to keep in touch, but it was getting harder and harder for her mother's Noctowl to find Ashy with the letters. It got more complicated since we decided to be "hoarders." Hoarders were people who took in wild Pokemon to protect them from both Team Humana and the resistance.

Boom! An explosion rocked our little hideout.

"It sounds like the fighting is getting closer." Ashy said. Her purple hair was up in a chaotic ponytail. Normally, she was a well-groomed Pokemon contest champion. Now, she was bending over feeding her Pokemon with half hazard purple hair. Ashy specialized in competing with her cat-like Pokemon. She couldn't get enough of them. Any time she looked at them or talked about them there was a twinkle in her eyes. I hoped that was the way I looked at my own Pokemon.

"Could be…" I responded reluctantly. I was tired of running. It had only been a few days since we ran from our last location and settled in this shack. I was tired of running because each time we fled there was another fight.

"You know what that means." Ashy had walked away from the feeding area and sat on a charred couch nearby. She was wearing her red leather jacket and some navy pants. It was her usual fashionable attire, but it was dirty and worn. It would do for a couple of flakey hoarders, I guess.

"It means we've got to go. I know." I felt my eyes roll. My Luxray looked up from my lap. She must have felt my frustration.

"Luxray, Lux, Luxray." Luxray barked. She was always ready for action. She was my fiercest Pokemon. I passed my fingers through her jet-black mane and sighed. I wished we were back at my house playing in the snow with the others. We were happy then. Would we be happy again?

"Yes, Luxxy, we're going to have to go again." I scratched her head and she closed her eyes. She was a big softy at heart, and she loved when I scratched the top of her head.

"When mine are done feeding, call all of yours out. They'll eat, then we'll feed the wild ones and head out." Ashy said. She got up again and filled some more food bowls for my Pokemon. I watched her upbeat movements in amazement, but then again, at least she knew where her parents were. I had no idea. People who weren't Pokemon trainers (like my parents) were herded into large shelters, but the stories I've heard say some of those people had been kidnapped and brainwashed by Team Humana. Every day I wondered about my brother and my parents. Ashy knew it. She usually left me alone during those slumps, but sometimes she was the one who lit the fire under my butt.

Ashy called back most of her Pokemon into their poke balls. She left out Espeon and Liepard, her two strongest. It was dangerous for anyone to venture outside without the protection of Pokemon, especially flakes and hoarders like us. It was also dangerous to keep them all out too. Liepard was fast and agile, and Espeon was a great defensive Pokemon, so it was smart to keep them out.

I finally got up away from the window. The snow was falling faster and the wind was howling. Luxray bounded out of my lap and sniffed for her bowl.

"Beauty." I called for my Ninetales who was out of her poke ball resting by the makeshift fire that we had made. Her brilliant golden fur shimmered by the light of the fire. She got up and elegantly pawed toward her food bowl with her tails dancing in the air behind her. Beauty was my first Pokemon and she held an extra special place in my heart. We also had a special relationship because she was able to communicate with me telepathically. Right now she could only connect with me and other Pokemon, no other humans.

I called out my other Pokemon; Blissey, Togekiss, and Roserade. They all happily found their food and began eating and talking like long separated friends. It was always a challenge for my biggest Pokemon, so I called him out last. Poor Dragonite had to always duck down and scrunch up uncomfortably in order to be inside. He never knew what I was calling him out into. Fortunately, we had been here for a couple days, so he knew to be ready.

Once they were done eating, I called back all my Pokemon into their poke balls. Then I sent Dragonite out. He sat down and bent his neck bringing the food bowl up to his mouth. "Eat up, buddy." I smiled. He was a big Pokemon, and a tough one at that, but he was also one of the gentlest creatures around. He rarely complained about the cramped conditions.

While Dragonite ate, Ashy and I prepared some leftover food for the wild Pokemon we rescued. They rushed over to the food and gobbled it up, many of them letting out calls of thanks. They all seemed so content. How could anyone think what we were doing was wrong? These Pokemon deserved a good life wild and free or with a trainer who actually cares for them. They didn't need to be raised for war.

I walked away to get my coat and gloves, which I had left in the room that may have once been the kitchen. On the way back I stopped and momentarily looked at my reflection in a soot-covered mirror hanging on one of the walls. I wiped away some of the soot and stared. I looked ragged. My green hair was all over the place. My clothes were torn up and dirty. This war was taking its toll on my appearance as much as my emotions.

"Neito!" Ashy called in a sort of hushed panicky tone. "We should go now." She was pointing to the window. I looked outside and could see there were several Houndoom and Mightyena sprinting and sniffing through the snow. They weren't wearing collars, so that meant they were a scouting group sent by the resistance. The armies were heading this way. That also meant that there could be some Team Humana troops nearby too. There had to be a reason for them to move this way. We had to move quickly and quietly if we wanted to escape unseen.

"I wish one of you had the ability to make us invisible!" Ashy joked with Espeon and Liepard. Somehow we always got caught, but we usually got away unscathed. We both had strong Pokemon that would do anything for us.

"Dragonite, you know the drill." I said.

Dragonite nodded. He was our main method of transporting the smaller wild Pokemon. The ones who could fly, flew behind him. Some of the bigger wild ones had to fend for themselves like the Deerling that joined our group. With one swoop, Dragonite took them all into his embrace. He lowered his wings and crouched through the doorway, breaking off a little wood as he went. I followed right behind him. As soon as he got out, he stopped. I had to squeeze by him. I knew there had to be a reason for his hesitation. At the door there was a group of Mightyena and Houndoom growling angrily at Dragonite.

Dragonite growled back. We should have left sooner, I thought, but I had no time to hesitate. Normally, Dragonite would have blasted them away, but he didn't want to risk the wild ones getting in the line of fire. I grabbed two of my poke balls from my belt. I knew just who to call for this situation. This wasn't the first time we had run into these Pokemon.

"Beauty, Luxxy," they appeared out of their poke balls. They growled and flashed their teeth at the resistance Pokemon. "You two know what to do."

They both nodded. Both of them firmly planted their paws on the ground through the snow. A raging fire emerged from Beauty's mouth. Beauty hit three of the Mightyena with a heated fire blast that melted all the snow in its path, while Luxxy struck some of the Houndoom with thunder that shook the ground. Once the other Pokemon were stunned and weakened, Beauty and Luxxy began running at full speed away from the shack. The idea was to draw the resistance Pokemon away.

It worked, with the exception of one. An Absol crept out from behind one of the other incinerated homes within the abandoned village. Dragonite looked at me with a soft mumble as if to ask whether he should escape with the wild ones or stay to help me. "Go." I said. He flapped his wings a few times then soared high up into the sky past the snow clouds until I could no longer see him. His movements caused Absol to charge toward me. Absol must have seen it as a threat. I reached for a poke ball just as Absol pounced, but suddenly in midair Liepard attacked Absol and they both came crashing down. I breathed a sigh of relief. Ashy had come out just in time.

"Great job Liepard!" She said as she burst through the doorway. "Now use scratch!"

Yeah, great job Liepard, I thought as I wiped my brow. That was too close.

Liepard's nails extended and glowed with powerful energy. She slashed Absol across the face. Absol let out a terrifying scream and attacked with her scythe sending blasts of energy our way. Ashy and I had to duck and dive into the freezing snow as one of the blasts practically demolished the shack we had been in only moments ago. Without Ashy's command, Espeon instinctively ran to help her friend, Liepard. Many of Espeon's strong psychic attacks would be ineffective against Absol, so I watched from the ground as Espeon hit Absol with a glowing iron tail. Liepard also struck Absol again with a scratch attack. Espeon and Liepard were attacking Absol left and right with terrific speed and power.

While they kept Absol busy, I reached out to help Ashy up. She got up and checked on Deerling who had ducked on her other side. Deerling was fine, just scared. We began running away, but Deerling ran in the wrong direction. Sadly, there was no time to chase Deerling. We had to just keep running. This was the scariest part. We had no idea where there could be stationed troops or hidden scouts, but we had to do it for the Pokemon. We ran through the gusting snow and refused to be stopped. The freezing air burned our eyes and the snow practically blinded us, but we had to get away for our sake and theirs.

"Espeon! Liepard! Come on." Ashy called back. In an instant her two friends flanked us on either side.

I had hoped they had worn out Absol to exhaustion, but I didn't have to look back to hear that she was still chasing us. I could hear her claws crunching on the icy layer of snow that had fallen a few days ago. We just kept running forward. We had to run. I looked over at Ashy who had a smile on her face as she ran. This was exciting, wasn't it? It was thrilling. I was scared, but invigorated. Then…

"Nine!"

"Lux!"

Beauty and Luxxy had joined us. Beauty ran along my left side near Liepard, and Luxxy ran along Ashy's right side with Espeon. The formation was complete. There was only one problem, I could hear more crunching behind us. There was still one Mightyena, one Houndoom, chasing us along with Absol. I looked quickly at Beauty. Her red eyes began to glow as she activated her telepathy.

{ _We defeated the others quite easily, but we had a hard time shaking these two_.} Beauty shared with me. That must have meant that they were stronger than the others. The three of them also seemed completely in sync. I wondered…they must belong to the same trainer!

"Oh no!" Ashy shrieked.

From either side of the woods came intimidating male and female Pyroar. Their fiery manes were unmistakable, even through the whipping snow. They were both heading right toward us. My heart nearly stopped. I was trying to devise an escape plan, but my brain seemed fried. We were basically surrounded. We were going to have to fight. We could take them on. I was feeling confident. Even if Dragonite stayed in the air, I think we could do it. Then I heard a flapping above our heads. I looked up expecting and hoping to see Dragonite, but instead it was a large purple and black Noivern! This was turning into one of our worst escapes yet! Someone was stalking us. They knew we were here. This was no coincidence. It wasn't the luck of a random group of resistance scouts. This was a powerful team of Pokemon belonging to a skilled trainer.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Allies for Change**

With one raging gust attack from Noivern's fast flapping wings we were all blown away and separated. I watched helplessly as my body was pushed off the ground and lifted into the air. My arms and legs were flailing around as I attempted to gain control, but it was useless. The wind was in control. I decided to brace myself by crossing my arms over my chest and putting my hands over my head as I dove headfirst into a drift of snow. "Nine!" landing next to me in the fluffy snow pile were Ninetales and Liepard. I didn't see where Ashy, Espeon, and Luxray ended up.

We all quickly got up on our feet. I brushed the snow off my coat and pants. Liepard and Beauty hopped out of the snow and they both shook the white flakes off their fur. I could see Beauty was especially unhappy, as she hated the snow and anything wet and cold. The first thing I did was look up above my head, but I did not see Noivern. That was good. Liepard and Beauty scanned the area too. It was weird. A moment ago Pokemon surrounded us, and now I couldn't see them anywhere. The snow was falling hard and fast, so maybe it was just making it difficult. This weather _was_ perfect for hiding.

I wondered if they had ganged up on Ashy. Ashy was a pretty good trainer, but looking at Liepard, I wondered how she would fair without her. I hoped she at least ended up with Espeon and Luxray. I knew Luxxy would protect her no matter what. I stared out into the white blur of snow and wondered what our next move should be. How would we find Ashy in this stuff? Should we just start walking and hope we get lucky?

"Lie, Liepard!" Liepard spoke, her nose to the ground. She must have smelled Ashy.

Beauty also brought her nose down to the snow. She nodded and looked up at me. Her red eyes began to glow. { _Yes, there is a sent coming from that direction_.} "Nine!"

Liepard and Ninetales, with their noses to the ground, began treading into the howling snowfall. I, of course, followed them using my arm to shield my face from the wicked snow. I trudged along trying to peek through the snow. Beauty's golden fur did not stand out as much as Liepard's in this snow, so I concentrated on the deep purple of Liepard's coat. We slowly and carefully made our way through the wintry forest.

"I'm over here!" I heard Ashy's voice. I could just barely make out her red jacket. I looked around her for a big black mane, but I saw no black. Where was Luxray? I could see a small purple creature by her legs, so Espeon wound up in the same gust current as Ashy. Suddenly, all I could do was worry about Luxxy. She was tough, but she couldn't stand against all those Pokemon alone. Even worse, I began fearing that the snatchers could have caught her. Would they even be able to see her? My hope was that the snatchers stayed away today.

Liepard happily jumped on Ashy and licked her face as soon as we were close enough. Ashy embraced her Pokemon with a smile. It only made me worry more for Luxxy. Beauty looked up at me. She nudged me slightly. "Nine, Ninetales!" Her eyes began to glow their crimson glow. { _We will find her_.} I half smiled at her.

"Luxxy is missing!" Ashy placed her hand over her mouth with a gasp. She had just noticed. "We have to find her." Ashy put her hand on my shoulder as if to show her sympathy for my worry. "We will find her, Neito."

Beauty already put her nose to the ground and began sniffing. "Nine," she seemed to be telling Liepard and Espeon to help her. They both put their noses to the ground as well. Then all at once their ears twitched. They all lifted their heads and looked in the same direction. Whatever they heard was too distant or soft for human ears because Ashy and I just looked at each other in confusion. No matter, they all froze and stared in the same direction. I wondered why they weren't moving.

"Should we go that way?" I whispered to Beauty, but she did not acknowledge my question. Ashy and I stared too. Something was coming.

Through the snow I saw a black blur. It started off small, but it was getting larger. My heart fluttered with excitement thinking it must be Luxray. It was getting closer and clearer as the snow whipped around us. My stomach dropped. It was not Luxray. I squinted into the barrage of snow to see that it was someone standing in the middle of a group of Pokemon. He was all in black from his shoes to the hat on his head. Even the hair peeking from beneath the hat was black. On his left was an Absol and a female Pyroar. On his right was a Houndoom, Mightyena, and a male Pyroar. This was the trainer who attacked us…our greatest threat yet.

I reached for my poke balls. We would need help if it came down to a battle. Ashy, I could see, reached for hers too. Did he want us as prisoners? Was he after our Pokemon? Was he after the wild ones? All these questions were racing around my head as he approached. Ninetales backed toward me and got into a battle stance. Espeon and Liepard did the same.

"Tell them to relax." His voice was rough and raspy. We still couldn't see his face clearly through the snow.

Without thinking, I shouted. "What have you done with my Luxray?" I didn't see Luxxy with his gang of Pokemon so of course I assumed he already did something with her. I wouldn't be able to ' _relax_ ' unless I knew she was safe.

Finally, he was close enough that we could see he was about our age. His dark blue eyes darted from me to Ashy, then to our Pokemon. His Pokemon were surprisingly relaxed. None of them were in an attacking position, and the two Pyroar even sat down once he had stopped in front of us. He seemed to be studying our Pokemon and us. What did he want? It wasn't clear. In the past, when we were caught, it came down to a pretty intense, but winnable battle. This encounter was different. For some reason he wanted to stop and talk.

"Let me guess," he smirked. "You are a couple flakes…maybe even hoarders…hmm?"

"What do you want?" Ashy asked. I could see her fingers curling up and tightening into fists.

"Worry a little less, will ya?" He said swiping his hand downward. "If I wanted a battle, it would have already started." He was smug. I didn't like it.

"Then what do you want? You obviously attacked us for a reason." I said.

"Well, you're traitors to the resistance, so naturally, I'm concerned. Why were you hiding? You both seem to have some pretty capable Pokemon." I saw his eyes move just past mine. He was looking behind me. I turned my head in the same direction and saw Luxxy! She was prowling over, looking ready to attack him. I lit up when I saw her, turning completely around, kneeling down and opening up my arms to hug her.

"Luxray," she roared. She jumped over and put her big black paws on my shoulders. I scratched her head. She rubbed her nose against mine.

"I'm so happy to see you!" I said. The world had stopped for that moment and I had completely forgotten about the mysterious trainer who was not attacking us for whatever reason. Luxray then hopped back onto the ground and stepped right up next to Beauty. I turned around and faced the trainer again.

"As I was saying, what are your intentions out here?" The trainer all in black asked.

"Just battle us and get it over with. You know what we are. Why do we have to have this conversation with you?" Ashy snapped.

"Tell me why…why are you two here?" He was persistent, but I got this feeling it was because he didn't want to battle. Looking at the loyalty of his Pokemon, I knew there was something more to this trainer. He was no ordinary resistance fighter.

"We're here because we believe there has to be a better way." I said. I watched as the corners of his lips cracked into a half hidden grin. I think that's what he wanted to hear.

"I couldn't agree more." He nodded with approval. He looked at all of his Pokemon. "These are our friends." They all smiled at him. His Houndoom and Mightyena even began wagging their tails. "My name is Nik. I am part of the resistance against the resistance."

Ashy and I once again shared a look of confusion with each other. This was a new category. Now there weren't just flakes and hoarders, but resistance against the resistance people?

"Let me explain. I am against Team Humana, but I am no longer with the resistance. I too believe there is a better way than battling out here and putting our people and Pokemon friends at risk. Some of us who were once fighting with the resistance have broken off and devised a plan to weaken Team Humana once and for all." Nik said. His words were powerful. His intentions seemed parallel to our own, but was this a trap? Was he trying to lure us in and then capture our Pokemon or us at a vulnerable moment?

"And how do you plan to do any of that?" I let my skepticism show.

"I get it. You are having trouble believing in the idea that we could be good guys. So did I…" Nik looked off into the snowy whiteness. "You see, a few weeks ago I was on that field. These guys," he gestured to his Pokemon, "they were fighting fiercely against Team Humana's enslaved Pokemon. It felt wrong every time. We were destroying these living creatures each day. They didn't ask to be in that position. They were only doing what they were being forced to do. It is those darn Team Humana people that deserve to be punished. The guilt around the fighting grew more and more each day. We tried attacking just the collars, but whenever one of my Pokemon attacked the collar, it just hurt the collared Pokemon worse." He sighed. "Then," his eyes lit up, "a girl approached me. She told me she knew how I felt. She told me she knew how to find Team Humana's hideout. She assembled a small group of us. We started calling ourselves the resistance against the resistance." He looked at me again. "I am inviting you both to join us – with your Pokemon of course."

I stepped over to Ashy. She stepped over to me. I cupped my hand around my lips. Nik looked away pretending there was so much else to look at.

"What do you think?" I whispered.

"I'm not sure. It almost sounds too good to be true." Ashy glanced at Nik.

"What if we see what happens if we go along? If things go well, then we stick with it, and if we don't like what we see or hear, then we get out." I suggested.

"What happens to the wild ones?" Ashy asked.

I looked at Nik and put my hand down.

"I have a few questions." I said.

"Of course. You should." He agreed.

"What would happen if we come along, then change our minds?" I asked.

"You would be free to go without fear of our penalizing you. But once you meet the others, I don't think you'll want to go." He sounded confident.

"How about the wild ones we've been protecting?" Ashy chimed in. I was going to ask, but I guess she couldn't wait.

"We actually know of a place called the true Pokemon Center. It is run by the mother of one of the resistance against the resistance members. They protect wild Pokemon from both sides of the war. The resistance leaders agreed Pokemon who end up there would be safe from war. We can bring your wild ones there." He explained.

Ashy and I smiled. I think we were feeling much the same. We were delighted. We often talked about finding others with our same mindset. On lonely nights we wished we could find some other way. We knew we couldn't do it alone, but Nik just offered us the two things we wanted most of all: an end to the war, and friends to join us in that fight.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Finally, A Home**

We trudged for hours through the snow. For the first few hours it kept coming down hard. I felt so miserable. I could only imagine Beauty's thoughts on the weather, so I called Beauty and Luxxy back into their poke balls. Ashy had Espeon and Liepard return too. We kept following Nik and his Pokemon through the seemingly unending forest. We had to trust that he was honestly bringing us somewhere safe. He was leading us away from the major fighting, so that was a good sign. At some point, though, I think Ashy and I decided that all that mattered was getting out of the cold. We were freezing, wet, and sweating. It was not a good combination.

We were delighted when the snow finally let up. It was still quite cold, but at least we could walk a bit more swiftly and see where it was that we were heading. Ashy and I had already wandered so far from our old town that when the forests around us started to look familiar it was a little eerie. Each time Ashy and I had run to a new location, the plants and Pokemon were a little different and unfamiliar. It was almost like with Nik it was working backwards, things were looking familiar. That tree. Those rocks. Then I realized. We had entered the Humble Forest. We were near the town where I had grown up.

I started to become a bit excited. It had been so long since I had been in the Humble Forest. I used to come all the time when I was very young. My friend Melly would join me out here looking for Pokemon. It was always a new adventure. The forest caused me to wonder about my old house and the village. I couldn't hear much fighting around these parts. Could it be that this was a neutral territory? I heard that some areas had actually been spared from the wrath and destruction of the war. I never understood how that could be, but looking around at the forest, besides the snow, it looked serene and intact. For some reason fighting had not happened in this forest. Was this where Nik's resistance against the resistance hideout was located?

"Nik," I called to him. He was walking a few feet ahead.

He stopped and looked back. "Yes?"

"Are we heading to Govida?" I asked.

"A little bit past it." He replied.

"Why hasn't this area been touched by the fighting?" I asked. At this point, Nik continued walking and we kept following.

"They say a legendary Pokemon protects this village…" Nik stopped momentarily. "I heard that when the war started all the people of the village stood hand in hand around the borders with their Pokemon. When the resistance recruiters came, the people would not let them pass. They wouldn't speak with them. Nothing. Supposedly they did it for five days straight. On the sixth day, they say a mysterious Pokemon came to the town leaders and pledged their protection." He shrugged. "I'm not sure what's true, but this whole area has been protected. Team Humana doesn't even come here."

"I believe it." Ashy said. "Neito, you should know. Weren't you born here?"

"Yeah, but it's been so long. I barely remember the legends. I doubt anyone I used to know is still here anyway." I said.

"Maybe you'll find out." Nik called from the front. "We're going to cross through the village anyway. The hideout is just past the Govida hills. It's the safest route. Your Pokemon can stop and get food from one of our members too. She lives here. She makes sure all our Pokemon are fed. She's a Pokemon breeder."

Ashy and I must have thought of the same thing in that moment; we would be warm. We shared a glance and a grin. What we would have given to be someplace warm. Nik guided us through the village. Though, I truthfully did not need much guidance. As we entered the village everything came back to me. Faces of old neighbors cycled through my mind. I could picture Old Man Wilson with his faithful old Growlithe rocking on the front porch. We walked past the old corner store, and the post office. It all looked mostly the same.

"We're going to take a left over here." Nik said.

I felt myself smile. We were taking a left onto Briar Road. That was my old street. I couldn't believe it! The memories of playing in this neighborhood with the people and Pokemon all came back to me. At the end of the road there was a small lake where I met Beauty for the first time. I couldn't have asked for a better place to rest. We walked right by my old house. I didn't say anything…I just slowed down to take a good look at it. The new owners gave it a fresh coat of paint, but it was the same place with the same prickly bushes in the yard. The lights were on, so I didn't want to stare too long, and so I continued.

"Was that your old house?" Ashy asked. "I noticed you slowed down."

I nodded. "Yeah, a lot of good memories there."

We kept walking toward the lake. I decided I had to call Beauty out. She needed to see this place. I pulled out her poke ball and released her. She gave me a bit of a wicked glare at first thinking I called her out into the snow again, but then her eyes lit up and her tails started wagging in the air. She ran behind me, back to our old house. I hadn't seen her so excited in quite some time. It delighted me to see her this way. She sniffed around the old mailbox and the prickly bushes. She even jumped up and peeked through the front windows. She was too small to do that when she was a Vulpix.

"Beauty!" I shouted. "You can't do that! It's not our home anymore." She jumped down and began walking by my side.

{ _I remember this place_.} Her ruby red eyes were glowing.

"I figured you would." I said. Then I pointed down toward the lake. "And look. That's Lake Govida and Melly's old house."

Just then Beauty dashed off in a bit of a sprint. She ran alongside Nik's Houndoom, which he had left out to lead us through the forest. They were both oddly excited as they ran toward the lake. I figured Houndoom was running there because he knew where we were headed, but I had no idea why Beauty was running in the same direction. But then, I realized why and I started running there too. They both had run onto Melly's old yard, and whom did I see coming out of the house to bring food for them? Melly, she still lived there. _She_ was the Pokemon breeder Nik had talked about!

I watched as she put two food bowls down for Houndoom and Beauty. She scratched both their heads saying something I couldn't hear just yet. That was probably the kindness she showed every Pokemon. I could tell she didn't recognize Beauty, yet she treated her kindly and without fear. Then she stood up and looked up the hill in my direction. I was waving my arms. She was just staring. Then she looked hard. She squinted. I watched as her head jerked from me to Beauty and back again several times. All of a sudden, she must have realized who Beauty was. I watched as she fell down on her knees in the snow and squeezed Beauty. Beauty licked her face. Melly giggled.

I eventually got close enough to give her a hug of my own.

"It's been so long!" I said.

"I know, but I'm happy to see you and Beauty have survived the war." Melly beamed.

"It looks like this village is doing well in that department." I said. She sort of looked down.

"Yes. Well…why don't you all come in with your Pokemon. We can talk there." Melly said as she began walking toward her house. Beauty and Houndoom had pretty much cleaned out the food bowls, so they followed right behind us.

The first thing I noticed was that her house was warm. She had a fire going and some other heat source flowing through the vents. It felt nice. I gravitated toward the hearth. The next thing I noticed was her Pokemon. There was an Umbreon sprawled across the couch. Cuddled up next to the Umbreon was a Chikorita. In one corner of her living room she also had large water tank and swimming around inside of it was a Horsea. I was surprised she didn't have more Pokemon around.

"Please sit down and make yourselves comfortable." Melly said. Just then her Chimecho floated in with a tray of hot chocolate. Her Chimecho must have been using telekinesis on the tray.

"Hi, I'm Ashy." Ashy stuck her hand out and Melly shook it.

"Hi Ashy. I'm Melly." Melly smiled. "Would you like anything? Nik, Neito?"

"I'm sure we could all use a hot shower and a place to dry our clothes." Nik suggested. Ashy and I nodded.

"Of course, of course. Firstly, my only rule in this house for Pokemon trainers is to let all their Pokemon out of their Pokeballs." Melly said.

That reminded me! Dragonite was still out there. Without a word, I pulled the dragon whistle out of my pocket and ran out the door. Dragonite and I had trained using a special whistle given to me by a dragon type trainer. The whistle could only be heard by dragon type Pokemon if they were trained. Each time Ashy and I had run to a new location, I would blow the whistle, and Dragonite would show up. I often wondered where Dragonite was hiding out during our run or if he was flying the entire time. I hurried to the middle of Melly's front yard and blew the whistle hard. We had walked much further than we had in the past, so I wanted to make sure Dragonite would hear.

My dependable Dragonite soared down through the white clouds with the wild ones still safely in his arms. With some mighty gusts that caused me to step back, he landed softly beside me. He had a smile across his face. He was as happy as ever. I was glad to see he was not upset with having to babysit for so long.

"You're the best," I rubbed his back. "You know that, don't you? We couldn't do any of this without you."

Dragonite let out a satisfied rumble.

We headed toward Melly's door. I wondered if Dragonite would fit. Her house was a fair size, but not dragon size. When I opened the door, I noticed the living room had become a bit more crowded. Eating from food bowls were Nik's Pokemon and Ashy's. There was hardly room to walk.

"Melly," I saw her sitting on the couch between Nik and Ashy with Umbreon and Chikorita on her lap.

"Yes?" She chirped.

"I think we have a problem." I said. At that moment Dragonite popped his head in.

Melly giggled at his antics. "No problem. Where do you think I keep my other Pokemon?"

I knew she had more!

"Have Dragonite leave those little ones here and then follow me." Melly got up and walked to the door. Dragonite put the wild ones down and they raced for the food. Then Melly stepped outside with Dragonite and me. She walked us around the house to a large Pokemon stable in the back. I instantly remembered when she was younger she was obsessed with Ponyta and Rapidash. It all made sense.

She opened the two large wooden doors. Dragonite and I stepped inside. It was warm inside here too. I looked around and saw Rapidash lying in her own stable. Next to Rapidash was Zebstrika also looking very comfortable. On the other side of the stable I saw Noivern. My heart stopped momentarily. Seeing him scared me a bit. He was the same Noivern that Nik had sent to blow us away. I hoped now he knew we were on the same side.

"Dragonite can hang out in here." Melly said. "There is food in the trough near Noivern if he's hungry."

"What do you think Dragonite?" I looked up at my big friendly monster.

"Draaaa…" He growled happily. He stomped over to the trough and began gobbling up the food.

"Okay. I'll be in the house." I said as Melly and I made our way out. Once Melly shut the doors of the stable, I had to ask. "How come Govida is safe? I mean why isn't there any fighting going on here?"

"Let's get back inside." Melly rushed me in through the back door into her house. She shut the door then grabbed my arm and pulled me aside. "The truth is the village is being protected by an Uxie and a Registeel, but not too many people know that. We want it to stay a mystery. We are all scared that if Team Humana finds out they will want to attack us and enslave Uxie and Registeel."

I nodded. "I understand. If people don't know, then they will stay way, but if they know it is only two Pokemon, then they might come just for that reason."

"Yes," Melly seemed relieved. "Please keep this a secret from outsiders."

"You can trust me." I said.

Just then Nik and Ashy walked in. Ashy was being followed by Delcatty and Zorua, two of her star Pokemon.

"Would it be alright for Ashy to hop in the shower and dry her clothes by the fireplace?" Nik asked.

"No problem. Nik, could you show her to the bathroom?" Melly replied.

"Yes. Come on Ashy." Nik and Ashy left the back room and walked down a hall.

"You're breaking my rule." Melly said to me after they left.

"Oh yes!" I needed to let out my friends anyway. I'm sure they were hungry after such a long journey. "Come on out, Luxxy, Togekiss, Roserade, and Blissey!" The four of them appeared. They all looked at me a bit confused. Melly's house was much nicer than many of the places we had been hiding in lately. They must have been confused as to why we were in such a nice house and about who Melly was. "This is Melly. She is letting us stay here for a little while. Isn't that awesome?"

They all smiled and let out cheers of excitement.

"They are all so great!" Melly exclaimed. "There is food in the living room, just through there." She pointed to an opening between the back room and the living room. We followed them into the room that was more crowded than ever. I couldn't believe my eyes, but seeing all the Pokemon together made me so happy. In the corner near the stairs I saw the male and female Pyroar lying down. Next to them, Houndoom and Absol were also lying down. The four of them looked very comfortable. Near the hearth, keeping warm was Beauty and Mightyena. Now, resting on the couch near Umbreon and Chikorita were Espeon, Liepard, and Purugly. Finally in the middle of the room, still eating contently were my Roserade, Togekiss, Blissey, and Luxxy.

I looked at Melly. "Where should we sit?" I asked.

Melly laughed. "Umbreon will move. Her bed is upstairs anyway."

Melly and I sat and talked for a long time. She told me how a few years after I left she started on her journey to be a Pokemon trainer. She even went to the nearby gym and challenged the leader, but battling just wasn't for her. From then on she decided she wanted to do something more. She got together with a good friend to open a Pokemon daycare on the other side of the village. She and her friend would take turns sleeping at the daycare to make sure the Pokemon were safe and taken care of. However, for a while now she was supporting the resistance against the resistance team by making food for the Pokemon and giving them shelter after journeys like ours.

Later into the night, Ashy and Melly went upstairs to the bedrooms to sleep. Ashy was practically half asleep after her shower anyway, so Melly walked her up the stairs and showed her the room she could sleep in. That left me to finally take a nice hot shower and dry my clothes, and once I left, Nik fell asleep on the couch. The house was so peaceful. All the Pokemon and people were sleeping soundly. I was the only one still awake. It was nice to finally have a place that I could possibly call home. It had been a long time since I had been able to wash up without worrying about an attack.

After my shower, I put on my dry clothes and started drying my hair. It felt so god to have clean hair again. Just as I was taking the towel to my hair, I heard a loud crash. Oh no, I thought, maybe one of the Pokemon woke up and knocked something down. Then I heard another sound, but this time it was louder and more of a bang. I dropped the towel and ran out of the bathroom. I could hear all the Pokemon stirring all over the house. I dashed into the living room and saw Nik was up too. He was alert and just listening.

"What was that?" I asked, my wet hair dripping a little.

"It was an attack. Intruders have entered the village!" Melly shouted as she ran down the stairs followed by Umbreon and Ashy. "They're at the lake. They're looking for Uxie!"

"Who?" Nik asked.

"Team Humana." Melly said.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Saving Uxie**

I immediately called my Pokemon back into their poke balls knowing we had to do something to help Uxie who had done so much for Govida. Nik and Ashy did the same. With haste Melly ran out back to the stable to get the other Pokemon. We told her we would head down to the lake. She agreed to meet us there with the other Pokemon. Nik ran out the door first. Ashy and I followed behind him. Even though it was dark, we could see there was some kind of commotion at the lake. There were beams of energy (probably hyper beams) being fired in the middle of the lake from both sides. Team Humana must have brought some of their enslaved Pokemon to do their bidding. It angered me so much. They were using the Pokemon they hated to eventually rid the world of them. It made no sense and it was wrong.

Before we could reach the lake, we all froze in our tracks. Two Team Humana bozos popped out from behind some trees trying to stop us. They were wearing the typical green and blue uniform with a big white H in the center. The colors were supposed to represent our world, which according to them, belonged to humans. They were a joke. We all knew what they really wanted was to be able to take control of the world without fear of being stopped by Pokemon. At the core, they were afraid of the Pokemon they just didn't understand. I had my suspicions that the head of Team Humana was probably once hurt by a Pokemon and from then on blamed Pokemon for all his problems.

"Stop right there, poke lovers!" One of them shouted. He had a neutralizer net gun in his hand. Those guns shot nets that could neutralize the powers of Pokemon to make them easier to capture. Some of the nets even sent shockwaves through a Pokemon to weaken them. I had heard horrible stories about them, but I hadn't seen one in person until now.

"We're doing you all a favor." Said another team member. She had a collared Nidoking by her side. His eyes were lifeless, like he was sleeping with them open.

Normally, I would call out a Pokemon to attack these jerks right away, but I hesitated. I was scared that they might use the neutralizer net. I didn't want any of my pals getting hurt, but I knew we couldn't just stand here and let Team Humana hurt Uxie. Just then, as I struggled to make a move, a powerful orange colored hyper beam blasted the guy with the neutralizer gun right in the chest. We all watched as he went flying backward with the force of the beam right into the lake with a splash.

We all turned around. The beam had come from somewhere behind us. Standing in the middle of the dark snowy street was the ancient and powerful Registeel. It must have shot the hyper beam. Another thing I had never seen in person. Not many people have. It's said that the Regis came from a distant Pokemon planet to help protect the Pokemon on our planet. After our initial shock, we turned back around. That attack only left the girl with her captured Nidoking still standing in our way.

"Thank you, Registeel. We'll take care of her now. Guys, attack, but don't hurt the Nidoking!" Nik shouted. We all nodded in agreement. "Go Houndoom, use fire spin!"

"Go Luxxy, use thunder!" I said as I pulled out her poke ball.

"Come on out Delcatty. Use hyper beam!" Ashy said as she tossed her poke ball into the air.

In an instant, our Pokémon came out and aimed their powerful attacks at the Team Humana girl. Burning fire spun from Houndoom's mouth. Thunder radiated out of Luxray, and Delcatty fired a fearsome hyper beam. We thought for sure that our attacks would take her out, but then the worst thing possible happened. The Nidoking jumped in front of her and took the full force of our attacks. He was knocked on the ground and he groaned in pain.

"You big baby! Stand up and attack them. That's all you're good for!" The Team Humana girl shouted. The Nidoking painfully stumbled to his feet. We all refused to hurt him even more, but what could we do? How could we get to her without him getting in the way again? I hated those darn collars!

"Nik, Neito! Use Noivern and Dragonite. Have them fly Nidoking away from here!" We heard Melly shout. She was galloping down the road on the back of Rapidash. By her side was Zebstrika and flying through the air over her head were Noivern and Dragonite.

"Good idea!" Nik shouted. I nodded. "Noivern, take Nidoking away!"

"Dragonite, go ahead and help Noivern." I said.

Dragonite and Noivern flew straight toward Nidoking. They each grabbed one of his arms and lifted Nidoking off the ground. He struggled a bit to stay on the ground and free himself from their grip. He was kicking his feet and yelling, but at that point he was too weak to put up much more of a fight. There was not much he could do as Noivern and Dragonite soared into the air with him in their arms. The two dragon-type Pokemon flew over the lake and seemed to drop Nidoking gently in the Humble Forest that surrounded the lake. He was better off lost in the forest then with any Team Humana member. Soon they were circling over our heads waiting for us to make our next move.

"No." We heard the Team Humana girl grumble. Then from her waste she pulled out a weapon I had never seen. It looked like a black and purple poke ball, but it was difficult to see in the darkness of night.

"No!" Melly shouted. She jumped off Rapidash and ran over to us. It looked as if she was attempting to shield us from this weapon. "That's a negatron ball!" Before we could do anything, the Team Humana girl threw the dark ball at us. The ball opened in front of us all and flashing blue and purple energy sparked from within the ball. The energy from the ball flowed outward and latched onto Delcatty like rope around her little wrists. Delcatty screamed in pain. It looked like she was being shocked by the energy. Ashy quickly grabbed Delcatty and was also shocked by the energy in the process. Ashy wrapped her arms around Delcatty's waist. They were both screaming and crying trying to hold onto each other. We watched, helplessly.

"Let go of my Pokemon!" Ashy cried. It was happening so fast, that none of us could do anything. In less than a few seconds, Delcatty was absorbed by the energy right out of Ashy's hands and into the negatron ball. Ashy dived to grab the ball, but before she could reach it, it floated away and shot up into the sky vanishing into the darkness. "Delcatty! No!" Ashy screamed. Tears were now streaming down her cheeks. "What have you done?" Ashy got up and courageously raced toward the Team Humana girl. "Go Espeon, use psychic!"

Espeon appeared out of her poke ball and rapidly used a psychic attack paralyzing the Team Humana girl before she could do more harm or run away. A blue glow surrounded her body. All she could do was move her eyes and her mouth as she struggled to escape the psychic hold over her. She was now Ashy and Espeon's prisoner. We all got closer to them, including Registeel who must have understood what had just happened. Espeon and Ashy were angry. All of us were. I could hear Luxxy growling as Ashy began interrogating the Team Humana punk.

"What did you do to her?" Ashy yelled. "What did you do with my Delcatty?"

"She's our prisoner now, but if she's weak, then she'll be dead soon." The Team Humana girl said harshly as if she were in any state to make such threats. She even laughed as if she had the upper hand, and, in a way, she did.

"Why, you miserable!" Ashy shook her fist in the Team Humana girl's face. "I should let Registeel destroy you right here!"

"It's not worth it." Melly said. "Come on out Chimecho!" Melly's cute little white and grape Chimecho appeared happily. "Chimecho, teleport some rope from the stable over here please. We can tie her to that tree over there." Melly stepped up to Ashy. "I know you want Delcatty back, but hurting her isn't the way. We will get Delcatty, trust me." Just then a pile of rope appeared on the ground in front of Melly.

"Espeon, send her over to that tree." Ashy said between sobs. Espeon nodded and sent the glowing Team Humana girl floating through the air over to the nearby tree. Without hesitation, Nik and I grabbed the rope and began tying her to the tree. As we were wrapping the rope, Ashy had one final thing to tell the Team Humana girl. "Maybe you, and the people on your team don't understand, but these Pokemon are our family. I know it can be scary that they can be more powerful than us. Maybe you had a bad experience, but Delcatty was one of my first Pokemon. I raised her since she was a Skitty. Just think about how you might feel if we captured your best friend, your brother or sister, not knowing if you'd see them again. That's how I feel." Ashy walked away. Tears were still gently falling from her puffy brown eyes.

"We still need to save Uxie." Nik said as we finished tying up the girl.

"Ashy, if you want to stay behind, we'd understand." I said.

"No." Ashy dried her tears away with her hands. She knelt down by Espeon who was now by her side rubbing up against her legs. "We need to do this because now it's for Delcatty. We need to find her."

"Es!" Espeon purred.

We all continued walking toward the edge of the lake through the tall grasses draped by snow. We could see two more Team Humana members. They were near the middle of the lake sitting in small boats commanding collared Pokemon. One was commanding a collared Gyarados while the other was commanding a collared Mantine. The Gyarados and Mantine were taking turns blasting something we could not see in the middle of the lake.

"What are they doing?" I asked.

"They're trying to force Uxie out." Melly answered.

"Why would Uxie be in the lake?" Ashy asked.

"Uxie isn't in the lake, but the portal to the dimension where Uxie sleeps is…" Melly replied.

"What's our plan?" Nik asked. "I'm not sure if they saw us take down their partners. Maybe we could…"

Just as we were brainstorming how to be sneaky, Registeel fired a hyper beam toward the center of the lake hitting the enslaved Gyarados. Gyarados roared, as he was forced backward through the water by the powerful hyper beam. We all paused, stunned by Registeel's attack. Even Dragonite and Noivern paused momentarily in the air. They must have known the hyper beam was not part of the plan. Registeel made a strange robotic clicking sound, and then fired another hyper beam at one of the Team Humana boats. Registeel must have felt we were wasting time, and obviously we didn't have time to waste. It was Registeel's duty to protect Uxie and this lake, and so he was just doing his duty.

"Togekiss, come on out!" My gentle flying and fairy type Pokemon appeared happily in front of us. "Togekiss, fly to the center of the lake and hit those Team Humana thugs with a moon blast then come back here. I don't want them hurting you." Togekiss smiled and in seconds soared to the center of the lake blasting the two men. One of them, the one whose boat had just been hit by Registeel, fell out of his boat. Then Togekiss swiftly and safely returned to my side. "Good job."

"Horsea," Melly called out her small water type Pokemon. "Swim over there and use your water gun to blast those two guys right out of the lake."

Horsea came out of her poke ball and jumped right into the lake. The little water Pokémon swam straight for the center of the lake. We watched from a distance as she blasted the man who was still on his boat, off his boat. Before she could continue attacking the men, Gyarados wacked her with his mighty tail. Little Horsea was sent flying through the air, and with a splash she landed by the shore next to us.

Melly darted to the edge of the lake and took Horsea into her arms. "Oh Horsea…" Melly cradled Horsea. "Chimecho, go to the center of the lake and use psychic on that Gyarados." Chimecho began drifting to the center of the lake with a happy little sound.

"Ashy, have Espeon hop on Togekiss. We can use psychic on Mantine too. Then Nik and I can send Dragonite and Noivern to capture those Team Humana goons." I said.

"Espeon, you heard Neito. Go ahead."

Espeon gracefully hopped onto Togekiss's back. With elegance Togekiss ascended and in seconds both Gyarados and Mantine were being held powerless by the psychic attacks. Both of the Team Humana goons were splashing around in the water rather helplessly. Now was the time. Dragonite and Noivern flew with rapid speed to the center of the lake. They each grabbed one of the Team Humana members and brought them back to us. It was a tad funny watching the men squirm in the strong arms of our large Pokemon. Even Dragonite and Noivern had smiles on their faces as the men wiggled like worms. When they landed in front of us, the men continued to struggle, but Dragonite and Noivern held on tight. Noivern even growled at the man who was kicking him. That stopped him instantly.

"What are you doing here?" Melly asked.

"Our mission is to expel Pokemon from our world." The older man in Noivern's clutches said without missing a beat.

"No. You subject innocent creatures to torture for the sake of humanity. You're a disgrace to humanity, that's what you are. You are the ones who don't belong." Melly said passionately.

"Where do Pokemon go when they're trapped in those negatron balls?" Ashy asked as she stepped toward the men. She stood side by side with Melly. They seemed to make a pretty good team.

The two men looked at each other. It was hard to tell what their mutual glances meant. Maybe the younger one was going to say something. "Have your wretched beasts unhand us, and we will provide you with the information you seek." The same older man spoke again. It was as if he were the team leader in this mission they were on. The younger man seemed to be waiting for the older man's approval.

"Not likely." Nik said. "Tell us what we need to know, then maybe we will spare your lives…or we could just have our Pokemon drop you when they reach a few thousand feet if you choose to stay silent."

His words surprised us a bit, but it could be that he was just trying to scare them. It seemed to work. The two men finally stopped fidgeting entirely and sweat seemed noticeable upon their brows. The younger man looked at the older man once again. I think he was trying to see what the older man would do. Would he reveal the secrets of the negatron balls or would he remain silent?

"The negatron ball works like any other poke ball, except it forces a Pokémon inside and it is teleported directly to our headquarters." The younger man said. Perhaps he was not as loyal a member as the older one.

"When it gets to your headquarters, what happens?" Ashy asked. This time she only spoke to the younger man being held by Dragonite.

"If it is strong they will put a collar on it and put it to work. If it is weak, then they kill it." The young one blurted without looking at the older one this time.

"That's all I needed to know." Ashy was confident that Delcatty was strong, but that didn't mean she would waste another moment.

"What do we do with them now?" Melly asked.

"I know exactly what to do. We'll use them for the plan." Nik said.

"Great idea!" Melly agreed.

Ashy and I shrugged.


End file.
